Monday, February 2, 2015

Working with my honey and homeschooling our gems doesn't leave much time for anything else.

This recipe, though, I just had to share. It is based on one shared by Martha at A Family Feast. It is really a great base recipe, with so many fabulous ways to customize it! Martha has a lot of other fabulous recipes, too. Everything I have tried so far has been a hit!

The original recipe for these breakfast cookies calls for 3/4 C coconut sugar in addition to the 3/4 C agave, which I choose not to use. We found these cookies to be pleasantly sweet with only 1/4 C sucanat (that's what I had on hand) added to Grade B maple syrup, but really could have done without it all. I guess it just depends on how sensitive to "sweet" you are.

To make nut butter, process 1-1/2 C nuts in food processor or high-speed blender until smooth, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. (I normally add a few teaspoons of high quality olive oil to help with the smoothness.) This will yield the 3/4 C nut butter you need.

In the food processor bowl with the nut butter, add syrup, coconut sugar, milk, egg, and vanilla. Process until combined and creamy looking, about 30-60 seconds.

Monday, October 27, 2014

Is anyone else creeped out by Halloween decorations? Okay, but there is the candy! I admit it. I'm a sucker for a Snickers bar or any high-end chocolate. Milk chocolate, please. And make it a double.

We haven't observed Halloween since the kids were really little. When they were older, we did attend our church's "harvest festivals". But now that our gems aren't so little anymore, we like to stay home, get a pizza (yes, not homemade), and watch a movie. Nothing creepy here.

How about you?

Dinner:

Monday

“Mystery
Bake” (I made up an extra “something” and froze it but didn’t label and I can’t
tell what it is…yet!); sautéed carrot/kale/mushroom medley; fresh bread*

Friday, October 24, 2014

Last Friday, I wanted to make something special for our Friday Night Dinner. I had just gotten a bunch of pears so I did a little searching on the net. I found this amazing-looking pear-blackberry tart. It is not a dessert that you can just "whip up" at a moments notice, but it sure was lovely, served nicely, and was delicious!

Below are my adaptations, but the instructions are the same as Russell's at Chasing Delicious.

Using a food processor blend the flour, sugar, butter,
vegetable shortening, and mixing powder until the fat(butter and shortening)
create pea sized chunks.

Blend in the egg mixture and vanilla. Pulse the food
processor until a dough ball forms (there will still be some stragglers).

Form the dough with all the straggling bits into a ball and
wrap in wax paper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to several hours.

Preheat the oven to 375F. Once it is chilled, press the dough evenly into the tart pan. You want an even layer along the
bottom and up the sides. Roll a rolling pin across the top of the tart pan to get a nice clean edge on the top of your crust.

You will need to make sure the pastry does not fluff up or
collapse in baking so line the dough with foil. Then place dried beans, pastry
weights, marbles, stones, or rice on the foil.

Place the tart pan on a baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for 6-8 minutes, or until the dough
is set. Remove the foil lining and rice (careful not to get any rice on the
dough) and bake for another 10-12 minutes until it is golden. When it is done
you will also notice the shell has shrunken slightly and pulled away from the
tart pan. (I used a 10" tart pan. If using a larger size, you will want to decrease your baking time by about 2-4 minutes total.)

Allow crust to cool for 2 minutes. Remove crust from the pan by placing the bottom on a large jar or something
tall with a flat surface–this will allow the side of the pan to fall down.
Carefully slide the tart onto a cooling rack.

Now you get to start making the custard!

Custard Ingredients

1 egg

1 egg yolk

3/4 C sucanat

1/3 C sprouted soft flour

1 C boiling milk

3 T butter

2 t vanilla extract

1/4 t almond extract

Custard Instructions

If you have a stand mixer I suggest using it, otherwise
prepare to do loads of mixing: Beat the egg and egg yolk slowly adding the
sucanat until it is pale yellow. Beat in the flour.

While you are mixing the egg, sugar and flour you should
bring your milk to a boil. Very slowly, with a few large drops at a time, or a
very thin stream add the boiling milk to the mixer. You must do it slowly or
you will risk scrambling the eggs.

Pour the mixture into a saucepan and heat over medium. Stir
slowly with a whisk until the mixture begins to come together. Now whisk like
you’ve never whisked before until the mixture is thick like a paste.

Lower the heat to medium-low and beat with a silicone or wooden
spoon for 2 to 3 minutes (this cooks the flour). Make sure the custard does not burn or stick
to the bottom of the pan.

Drain the pears. If using almond extract, add that now. Add the pears to the boiling syrup. Lower
the temperature to low (to have the pears just below a simmer) for 8
to 10 minutes. Make sure not to overcook the pears as they need to retain their
shape for the tart.

Remove the pan from the heat and let the pears cool in the
syrup for 20 minutes. Drain the pears on a rack.

Rapidly boil down the syrup until it is very thick.

In another sauce pan add the blackberry jam and 1/4 cup the
reduced amaretto syrup. Bring to a boil then simmer for a couple minutes until
it is all well mixed.

Paint the inside of
the sugar crust with the jam and syrup mix/glaze.

Spread the custard over the glaze.

Cut the pears crosswise. Keep the cut pear together and lay
on the custard fanning it out once you have it in the tart. Use my picture as a
guide. Save one of the pears for the center (cut it so it forms half a
sphere). Add the blackberries in the bare spots and around the center
pear.

Spoon the amaretto syrup/glaze over the top of the tart
covering all the fruit.

Saturday, October 11, 2014

This weekend, you can receive FREE SHIPPING from Tropical Traditions on any size order of $15 or more. That's a great deal when purchasing heavy items like coconut oil or the palm shortening I love for pie crust or any other time I'd use shortening.

Speaking of palm shortening, it's on sale now, too! A whopping 40% off on a gallon through Sunday.

So if you need anything from the nice folks at Tropical Traditions, be sure to take advantage of the free shipping!

Monday, August 11, 2014

Hi. My name is Lynette and I used to be afraid to make pie crust. Until now.

I'm sharing my story that, maybe if you, too, live in fear of producing a flaky, buttery crust and end up covertly grabbing a store-bought one instead, that you know there is hope.

In my search for the best pie crust recipe and tricks to make it turn out flawlessly, I ran across this vid. I learned a lot from Chef Cristina and have made several pies since getting this recipe. I'm not kidding... several pies. Each have turned out so well that I am convinced that it is good enough to share with you, my friend!

You see, it isn't just the recipe that makes a great crust. It's technique, technique, technique! Yes, it may require just a little extra time, but it does make all the difference in the world.

Now something of note is that a pie crust and a pâte brisée are not the same thing. A pie crust is to be light and flaky; merely a way to present the glorious filling in a somewhat orderly fashion. A pâte brisée, on the other hand, is truly a member of the party. It is more substantial with a sugar cookie-like texture and is better suited for tarts.

So... today, my young padawan, I will share with you the skill to make your own flaky pie crust so you do not have to turn to the Dark Side in the grocery store.

Freeze butter. If using palm shortening, measure and freeze that, too, for about an hour or until hard.

Cut frozen butter (and palm shortening) into small cubes/shards. Do this quickly as you don't want the fats to become soft.

Add all ingredients EXCEPT WATER into mixer
bowl.Using paddle attachment of your stand mixer, mix on lowest speed until
crumbly. This will take about 2 minutes. You will still see pieces of butter and shortening in the flour. Check dough to see if when pressed together in
the hands it holds together.Dough
should be somewhat loose with bits of butter still visible. This is good! (See video)

Add about ¾ C of the water.Mix on low just until dough starts to come
together. You may need to add more water if all the flour is not incorporated in the dough. Be careful not to mix too long as this will produce a tough crust. This whole process takes maybe 1 minute.

Turn dough out onto floured surface.Pat out slightly. Fold dough over on itself 3-4 times. This will help create the flaky layers we covet so!

Mound dough and cut in half, making each into a
disk.

Wrap each half in plastic wrap and refrigerate
at least 60 minutes or up to 2 days. (Don't be tempted to rush here... This step will allow the gluten in the flour to
relax and be much easier to work with.)

When ready to bake pie, make filling first.

Take pie crust out of refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes before rolling out. This will allow
it to soften slightly, make rolling easier and prevent cracking.

Unwrap dough and place on a floured surface. Roll out, turning dough a quarter turn after each pass. Add a small amount of flour under dough if it begins to stick. If crust cracks around the edges while rolling out, lay a tea towel or plastic wrap over the top for just a minute or two, allowing it to soften a little bit more. Continue rolling until dough is about 1" larger than pie plate.

Gently press crust into bottom, corners, and
sides of pan. Do not stretch dough.

Prior to filling, brush beaten egg on bottom and
sides of crust to prevent sogginess. Brushing top crust with beaten egg gives the crust a beautiful golden, glossy finish.

Freeze completed pie for 15 minutes or refrigerate for 30
minutes before baking.

My favorite do ahead tip: Place the wrapped pie crust disk in a freezer bag; label.Freeze for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw in the fridge overnight. This works fabulously and doesn't take much time at all. Then when you want to make a pie, half the work is already done!